Shofar

A Shofar is a natural instrument made from animal horn that has been in use since Biblical times. The shofar is mentioned frequently in the Hebrew Bible. It was a shofar blast that emanated from the thick cloud on Mount Sinai and made the Israelites tremble in awe (Exodus 19-20). The shofar was used the announce holidays (Psalms 81:4), to sound in the New Year (Leviticus 7:9), in procession with the Ark of the Covenant (II Samuel 6:15, I Chronicles 15:28), to signify war (Joshua 6:4, Judges 3:27), and just as a beautiful musical instrument (Psalms 98:6, 47:5).

It is important that the shofar used is kosher. There are specific requirements for a shofar to be considered kosher. First, the shofar must be from an animal which complies with the kosher standards for eating the animal. These standards can be found in Leviticus 11:3-8 and Deuteronomy 14:4-8. According to these rules, anything that chews the cud and has a cloven hoof would be ritually clean. However, cow horns and animals in the cow species cannot be used to make shofars. The horn of a cow or bull is called in Hebrew “keren” and not “shofar.” In addition, the cow/bull horn is forbidden because of sin of the Golden Calf committed by the Israelites coming out of Egypt.

The two animals horns most commonly used to make shofars are the African kudu which gives us the Yemenite shofar and the ram which, of course, gives us the rams horn shofar. Additionally, the shofar can have decorations; however these cannot affect the natural sound of the shofar. Finally, many prefer the shofar to have a bend as this reminds us to bend our hearts to G-d.

Therefore, there are two basic kinds of shofars: the Yemenite and the Rams horn. The rams horn shofar is considered by many to be the more genuine shofar. When Abraham was on the verge of sacrificing his son, Isaac, G-d send an angel to stop him. Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught by the horns in the thicket. This ram was provided by G-d for sacrifice in Isaac’s place. Some say than Abraham took the horns of this ram, cleaned them and made the first shofar. The rams horn shofars are preferred for use on Rosh HaShannah because they serve as a reminder of Abraham’s devotion as we ask G-d for redemption for our sins.

The Yemenite Shofar has a much more recent history. The Jews of Yemen (a country on the tip of the Arabian Peninsula) had no access to the horns from rams. Therefore, to make shofars and fulfil the mitzvahs of sounding the shofar, horns from the Kudu, a type of antelope, were brought from Africa. These were brought across the narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The kudu fulfilled the standards for making a kosher shofar. Yemenite shofars can be quite spectacular; they are elongated spirals in shape and have a deep resonance which some liken to an echo off a mountain.

At Shofar.co you will find an amazing variety of both Yemenite shofars and rams horn shofars. They come in many sizes and finishes. All the shofars for sale at Shofar.co are kosher and of the highest quality. Shofar.co also offers beautiful shofars decorated with silver plating in a number of inspirational designs.

Sounding the Shofar

Sounding the Shofar requires practice and persistence. The shofar is sounded the same as would a trumpet or any other brass instrument. The sound is caused by the air being blown through the lips into the shofar; the sound vibrations produced resonate through the horn producing the tone. However, unlike other instruments, the shofar only has the mouthpiece with which to product notes.

To produce a sound, seal your lips. Place the shofar mouthpiece gently to them. Concentrate on keeping your lips closed, but create a small hole in the lips at the point of the mouthpiece. Forcefully blow out past the lips and into the shofar. Hopefully, this will result in a clear, crisp sound.

The lips closed loosely produces lower notes, whereas the tighter the lips are held, mid range and higher notes are obtained. Air flow can be improved by extending your chin upwards and breathing from your diaphragm ensuring that all the air is going into the Shofar. It is important to remain relaxed.

Remember, sounding the shofar is difficult. If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again! Relax and enjoy as you practice sounding your shofar… even the first sounds will be beautiful!

Shofar - Make An Offer!

Shofar.co is a leading retail and wholesale supplier of Yemenite shofars and rams horn shofars as well as shofar accessories. Shofar.co always has thousands of high quality shofars for sale in stock and ready to be shipped around the world. All our shofars are shipped directly from Israel and meet exacting kosher standards. When the world wants to buy shofars the world comes to Shofar.co. We invite you to browse our on-line store to see for yourself all of amazing shofars we have for sale. Let us be your shofar connection.

Interested in wholesale or bulk orders? Make us an offer! We are always willing to negotiate to bring your organization the highest quality shofars at the very best prices on the internet. We are happy to work with religious organizations, businesses and individuals. Shofar.co wants to be your wholesale supplier of shofars.

When you are ready to buy shofars we want to hear from you! Complete our Contact Us form and we will get back to you.

Buying a Shofar

1) Find a reputable shofar dealer.
This you have already accomplished! Shofar.co sells only high quality, kosher shofars. We stand by our products as we know we sell the best shofars from the largest shofar producers in Israel.

2) Choose the type of shofar.Yemenite/Kudu Shofar or Ram’s Horn Shofar are both excellent choices. The Yemenite Shofar comes from the kudu antelope and can be quite dramatic looking. However, the Ram’s horn shofars are the original shofars referred to in the Bible.

3) Choose a size.
There is a great range of sizes for all the shofar types. Generally speaking, the larger the shofar, the easier it is to play and the more tones and notes it produces. Therefore, you need to balance your budget with a shofar that will be comfortable for you to play. Please note that the shofar is measured along the curve and not from tip to tip.

4) Choose the finish of the shofar.
This is a matter of taste as the finish of the shofar will not affect the sound. You can choose from fully polished with all the natural husk removed or half polished with half of the natural husk removed and half still remaining. There are also silver plated shofars in several beautiful designs.

5) Decide if you need any shofar accesories.You may want to buy a shofar bag or a shofar stand to display the shofar in your home or place of worship.